Mt Fuji
11 posts
…Yokohama, food (everyone skips the booze except for me) and a trip to the beach in the early morning. Everyone’s tired, someone’s trying really hard to hit on someone in the group, why did I bother to go…
Anyways, it was fun. But again, I wasn’t really into it.
At 8 in the morning and we’re heading back. At 9 or so I get to work, sleepdeprived and really not in the mood.
Fight eyes from shutting, dozes off once or twice but only for a second.
Write grad-work with left hand while laying out boring old press releases using the computer to the right side of me.
Around 7 or 8 in the evening I’m done with work and surprisingly not sleepy anymore.
I go shopping for a book but ended up buying a jacket, jeans, more, instead. It’s freezing.
Got home, stay up until 1 at night writing a blog. Hit the publish button with my forehead (previous entry…Geisai Saturday, maybe?)
…continuing. When were we leaving said lodge? 9? 10? 2? Breakfast was at 8, I distinctively remember that because…it was distinctively few hours between sleep and food.
Onsen, biking around the pond close to big mister Fuji himself, local food, so on. Wasn’t really into it. See I hardly know these people that well.
Be my mood killah beeeeibiiiiiii
(The cameraman gets shut out. The tiny piece of gray t-shirt on the left is me, if you’ve wondered. Sure you were)
(Takaisou Takaisou Fu – Ji – SaaaAAAN)
Oh, instead of heading home today someone suggested staying up all night still playing around. Technically, that’s tomorrow. Anyways, so we did…This is the day of the great cleanup. Campus is like a battlefield (bodies, trash everywhere). I went to work in the morning after sleeping 3 hours or so in the cold tent and thus had the perfect excuse to leave.
But I got back. Geisai isn’t something that one can run away from. The Yumi Kaoru team headed for mention sobering up trip. And off we went. Yamanakako was the goal. That place close to mister Fuji.
(Btw. Willie is a freaking badass driver! Awesome driving. Really the mountain curves. Too bad the rest of the passengers protested)While driving the steep hills and narrow roads of that mountain area there’s someone racing by, crossing the roads yellow line. Yoshiko, in our car, says in a low voice “ouh, Amerikaâ€.
This is the kind of cute humour I appreciate to the level where I can’t help to burst out a crazy laugh. And I don’t think anyone in the car understands why I laugh.
Yoshiko is teh funniest. A few days later we are all rolling down a grass-slope (not in a car. Really tumbling down a real slope). She yells out “Waah, adobentchua! (re: wow, adventure).
The funniest.
(Arrived at the lodge late. Games until 6am or so)All right, back to the trip. Booze, games and whatever. I wasn’t really into it that night.
Mood-killer, babeeeee. No matter how much tension were raised.
(Out strolling with everyone)Yamanakako is a peaceful place almost by the foot of Mount Fuji. About a 3 hour ride from Tokyo. Turns out that the University owns a lodge there and most kids go at least once during the time at Tamabi.
This weekend it was mine and about 15 of the undergrad, masters- and soon-to-be doctors turn to go. The session was on the design and psychology of everyday things. “Norman-doors”, “The nature of human cognition”, that sort of high-caliber kind of studies.
And then there was beer.
Drinking with ones professor is common here. Have heard of no such thing in Sweden. Maybe Swedes fear a loss of respect for a teacher seeing him/her in the midst of some debauchery. But it makes sense. It’s good for relations.
This hazy but lovely way of communicating is something have absolutely no problems with since day one; I dig.
What I have had second thoughts off was the hotsprings.
See, the lodge at Yamanakako is about a 5 minute ride from the local “onsen” (hotspring). It was a terribly beautiful one out in the open, with the mighty Fuji on display right there from the tub. Of course we had to go.
Before Japan I don’t think I’ve ever seen a grown man naked. More less a professor. My professor. I had my doubts about the onsen. 2nd thoughts. Maybe 3rd too.
But I was wrong. It was pretty great sitting in a 41 degrees warm hotspring with him and the others, talking about how great it would be to sip sake while studying design right there in the tub, with Fuji on display. There were discussion on everybody chipping in on a “tamabi-runned minibus” so we could have all our classes in the hotspring. We talked about waterproof laptops and the correct temperature of the bath for us to spend a whole day in without getting overcooked.
All in all a good weekend of studies, with much uncovered and learned.
…Did I just pun?
Coming attractions
Coming Friday I’m throwing a b.b.q. on campus. If you read this, and happen to be in Tokyo, feel free to come over.
Last time I held something it was Mexican-themed. This time it will be in American fashion: hamburgers, hotdogs, Budweiser & Coors. Also Twister.
Speaking of which: after some uncarefull consideration (went to a Karaoke until 6 this morning) a pretty funny idea was born – Outdoor Twister 20 player game. What we will do is print up 5 more sets of Twister mats and spread it all out outside. It’ll be a heap of fun.
…I did it again didn’t I?
Update (24/5):
Rain tomorrow. B.B.Q. next friday instead.